Cancelling the apocalypse has never looked so good.

Rating: 8/10 (13 July 2013)

The publicity for Guillermo del Toro's robots vs monsters saga promised it would go big. That was an understatement - this blockbuster goes colossal. In fact I'm hard pressed to think of a movie that's larger in terms of physical scope, if not concept or narrative. It's easy to see where the reported US$180m budget and additional year in production was spent; del Toro has crafted a visually spectacular experience that goes from one breathtaking set piece to the next, rarely allowing you to exhale, let alone notice the numerous plot contrivances or gaps in its own logic. The CGI is, predictably, utterly flawless and the 3D (the main reason behind del Toro's demands for an extra year before release) is immersive, whilst the creation of both the massive man-made machines and the gigantic alien creatures are imaginative and memorable. As for the puny humans, 'Sons of Anarchy' star Charlie Hunnam - a future A- lister without doubt - is charismatic and strong in the lead role, Rinko Kikuchi is intriguing as the sidekick shrouded in mystery and Idris Elba is reliably compelling as the tough military leader who is attempting to cancel the apocalypse. Unfortunately, this film also emphasises why I can't stand comedian (I use the term loosely) Charlie Day; he's once again painfully irritating as a shrieking douche bag. There's no denying that del Toro has discarded a strong story in place of delivering unabashed popcorn thrills, but when it looks this damn good it's hard to care.